There are many instances of dishes that have been created and become widely popular when cuisines are successfully fused together. One tasty example is bánh mì, pronounced “bahn mee,” according to the sources I checked.
It’s a type of sandwich that originates from Vietnam and is a product of French colonialism in parts of Southeast Asia. Bánh mì is made by combining French ingredients, such as baguette, butter, mayonnaise and pâté, with Vietnamese ones, such as lemongrass-flavoured pork patties, Asian-style cured meats, sweet-and-sour pickles, fresh chilies and cucumber.
Bánh mì is also called a Saigon sub and the term sub is appropriate given bánh mì similarities in look to a North American submarine sandwich. In fact, submarine-sandwich-crazy North Americans have become enamoured with bánh mì, with restaurants and food trucks here, there and everywhere now serving it.
Just as with a submarine sandwich, there are many versions on bánh mi. The inspiration for mine came from Jeffrey Alford’s and Naomi Duguid’s award winning book Hot Sour Salty Sweet: A Culinary Journey Through Southeast Asia. Their recipe lets you fill the baguette as you like from a fairly long list of ingredients, giving you the option to add as many, or as little, of them as you like. Those ingredients include some of those noted and others, such as cured ham and headcheese.
I opted to stuff my bánh mì with homemade, Asian-flavoured pork patties, local paté, homemade pickle, hot sauce and fresh toppings, such as crisp lettuce and aromatic cilantro sprigs. It was delicious served with sparkling limeade.
To make sparkling limeade, fill a tall glass about a fifth full with fresh lime juice sweetened with sugar to taste, which you stir in until completely dissolved. Then, fill the glass half full with ice cubes and top it up with club soda or other sparking water. If desired, you could also swirl a few fresh mint leaves into the drink.
Bánh Mì with Pork Patties and Daikon and Carrot Pickle
There are many versions of bánh mì, but I can describe mine as being rich and full of diverse flavours and textures.
Preparation: 45 minutes
Cooking time: About 10 minutes
Makes: Four servings
For the daikon and carrot pickle
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
2 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 cup peeled daikon, cut into thin strips (see Note 1)
1/2 cup peeled carrot, cut into thin strips
1/2 tsp salt
Place the water, vinegar and sugar in a small pot. Bring to a simmer for 30 seconds over medium-heat and stir to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature.
Place the daikon and carrot in a fine sieve. Add the salt and toss to coat the vegetables with it. Set the sieve over a bowl or sink and let stand a room temperature for 30 minutes.
When the 30 minutes are up, rinse the vegetables with cold water and then pat dry. Place the vegetables in a small bowl or jar. Pour and stir in the vinegar mixture. Cover and refrigerate this pickle until needed below. The pickle can be made a few hours before needed.
For the pork patties
1 lb. ground pork
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 green onions, sliced
2 tsp finely chopped lemon grass (see Note 2)
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp fish sauce
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place all ingredients, except oil, in a bowl and mix to combine. With cold water moistened hands, shape the meat mixture into 12 equal balls. Now shape each ball into oval patty that’s about two-centimetres thick.
Heat the oil in a large skillet or griddle set over medium-high. Fry the patties three to four minutes per side, or until cooked. Use as described below.
To finish banh mi
4 (20-cm long) pieces of baguette, or 4 crusty hot dog or panini buns, split and warmed
• mayonnaise, to taste
1 1/2 cups shredded head lettuce or Chinese or Napa cabbage
150 grams pâté, sliced, or to taste (see Note 3)
• Asian-style hot chili sauce, such as Sriracha, or thinly sliced hot fresh red chilies, to taste
• small cilantro sprigs, to taste
Spread the inside of each piece of baguette (or bun) with mayonnaise. Set some lettuce (or cabbage) in each bun, then add some slices of pate. Now place three pork patties in each bun. Top the patties with some of the chili sauce (or fresh chilies), cilantro sprigs and carrot and daikon pickle. Serve immediately.
Note 1: Daikon is very large and slender white radish sold at most supermarkets and Asian food stores.
Note 2: Stalks of lemon grass are sold in the produce section of most supermarkets. Peel off and discard the tough outer leaves before chopping what you need. Make sure you finely chop it as even the more tender parts can be a little fibrous.
Note 3: I used Hornby Island brand red pepper, garlic and herb pâté in this recipe. It’s meat-free and worked well with the other tastes in this recipe. It is available in the deli section of many supermarkets. If you can’t find it, you could use a pork pâté, such as country-style, also called pâté de campagne.
Eric Akis is the author of The Great Rotisserie Chicken Cookbook (Appetite by Random House). It will be released March 31. His columns appear in the Life section Wednesday and Sunday.
